Portman could face heat on steel

Democrats have made no secret of how they would skewer Ohio Sen. Rob Portman if Mitt Romney puts him on the ticket: by tying the former White House budget guru to former President George W. Bush and his controversial economic policies.

That’s the broad-brush. But there’s one particularly potent line of attack top Democratic strategists are itching to launch. As Bush’s top trade negotiator in 2005, Portman urged the president not to impose restrictions on cheap Chinese steel imports, causing a drop in sales and job losses for the U.S. steel industry.

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And that could resonate with voters at a time they’re worried about the economic threat from China and American jobs being shipped overseas.

Portman’s camp argues that this very attack was leveled at him during his 2010 Senate run to little effect. Portman handily defeated Democratic Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, 57 percent to 39 percent. And Portman says that when his record on China-trade enforcement is examined in full, it’s evident he’s worked to even the playing field with Asia’s greatest economic power. Just last fall, Portman defied GOP leaders and voted for legislation allowing the U.S. to penalize China for manipulating its currency.

Democrats, however, say the political climate is much different this election year than in 2010, when a Republican wave helped sweep Portman into the Senate. And they’re trying to revive the steel issue just as President Barack Obama and Romney jostle over who’s been tougher on China and who’s the bigger outsourcer. The December 2005 decision also could figure prominently in swing states with proud steel-producing traditions, such as Pennsylvania, Indiana and Portman’s home state of Ohio.

At Bejing’s urging, Bush — with backing from then-U.S. Trade Representative Portman — refused to impose quotas on Chinese steel pipes, arguing that it wasn’t in the “national economic interest.” That overruled the U.S. International Trade Commission, which months earlier had recommended to Bush and Portman that quotas be put in place for three years, warning that Chinese steel was flooding the market at such a rate it could disrupt U.S. producers.

Chinese officials had spent months lobbying Portman on the issue. After meeting with Portman twice, his Chinese counterpart, Commerce Minister Bo Xilai, warned the future senator in a letter that such an action could jeopardize U.S.-Sino relations.

“If the U.S. side provides [quotas on Chinese steel] which deserve no remedy at all, it will bring serious adverse impact to the bilateral economic and trade relationship. …” Bo wrote Portman on Dec. 9, 2005. “I believe that you, in your capacity as the U.S. Trade Representative, will be able to play a key role in ensuring a correct decision made by the U.S government in this case.”

Bush’s decision to ultimately side with the Chinese outraged American steelmakers and Democrats.

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CORRECTION: Corrected by: Vivyan Tran @ 07/25/2012 02:36 PM
CLARIFICATION: A previous version of this story incorrectly referred to the Alliance for American Manufacturers. It is the Alliance for American Manufacturing.